THE INTEGRATION PROBLEMS OF THE GERMAN IMMIGRANTS FROM RUSSIA IN GERMANY

Integration of the Germans coming from Russia in Germany is determined by many different factors: expectations of the new country the newcomers have previously had, the attitudes of the German society, but also legal regulations and political decisions defining procedures concerning ways of their integration. People of German nationality coming from Russia meet numerous obstacles on their way to adjustment: problems with finding employment and recognition of their former education. Language problems. No less important are troubles in accepting the mechanisms of a modern democratic state and society, not familiar to them previously. This leads to the crisis in the emigrants' value systems. Some of their problems are typical immigrants' problems. There are also other ones, those of that particular group, i.e. ambiguity of their national identity. In Russia they were considered 'Germans', now in Germany they are referred to as 'Russians' and in effect they don't know where they actually stand. The situation of being 'in between' can by no means help those people to stand on their feet again in the new society. It often leads to social conflict, tendency to social isolation, juvenile delinquency, alcohol and drug abuse, disturbances in physical and mental health. The official German attitudes to the problems and strategies of the immigrants' integration have been changing within the last few years. The authoress studies the process taking those changes into consideration and referring to the most recent opinions in the debate on solving the problems of adjustment of the 'Russian Germans'.